


A Sweet Secret

by JJCross



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: I don't want to spoil the ending, Implied Sexual Content, Lies, Mystery, but nothing too explicit, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-05-29
Packaged: 2018-07-10 21:41:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7009195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JJCross/pseuds/JJCross
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Danny seems to be lying, and Sam is determined to figure out the truth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Sweet Secret

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick warning, read the tags. I don't want people upset because they thought this story was one thing and then it turns out it contains something they hate. So read them first.
> 
> Anyway, just a fun little oneshot! I wanted to publish something for Phanniemay and now that school is over, I had some time. As a certain someone has countlessly reminded me, I haven't published anything for a while since my last fanfiction, so I wanted to just write something fun and short before starting a longer chapter-fic again. So this was the result, and boy was it fun! I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just save anything more for the ending notes! ;3

 

 

Sam knew nearly everything about her two best friends, Tucker and Danny. Tucker loved to eat anything that was once alive, much to her annoyance and disgust, as well as had an almost unhealthy obsession with anything made of metal that had a screen and buttons. Danny has dreamed of being an astronaut since he was about three, and had supernatural superpowers. The three of them had been friends for years, told each other everything and knew more about each other than they probably should—she honestly wanted to forget that one time she’d caught Tucker in his room with a photo of Ember and a tissue box. And not because he was emotional about the deep meanings of her lyrics. Yuck!

So since Sam prided herself on knowing her friends so well, when one of them was acting odd in any kind of shape or fashion, Sam’s instincts perked like a dog on the hunt. Being the only female of the group, she sometimes had to take it upon herself to watch out for her two reckless and sometimes absentminded male friends, watching over them like a mother hen. Or mother bear.

She noticed something was a bit off when Danny arrived to school with a new phone. Nothing too strange really about that, it could have been from allowance savings, money from a part-time job, a birthday present, or any other kind of normal reason a sixteen year old might suddenly have upgraded to the newest and greatest phone on the market. Only thing is, Sam knew Danny’s birthday still wasn’t for another two months, he didn’t have any part-time jobs outside of ghost hunting (and that was unfortunately a non-profit), and she’s known Maddie and Jack long enough to know they weren’t suddenly giving Danny an allowance after all these penniless years. It was odd, but not strange enough for Sam to question it much; he could have sold some of his collector’s item for it perhaps. No big deal really.

The next thing that really got Sam suspicious though was the new clothes. Danny was of a practical, unflashy sort—a plain T-shirt, normal faded blue jeans and some scuffed sneakers had been his signature look all throughout high school, and he’d seemed perfectly content. But suddenly, Danny was coming into class with new sneakers that had _all_ the boys jealous. He was rocking new, brand-name jackets, sharp jeans, even a silver Rolex shined on his wrist, despite his new phone that could display the time just fine. He also had a pair of designer sunglasses that had all the girls looking and whispering; even Sam blushed when they were chilling outside, Danny lounging like a cat in the sun with his impressive glasses, Sam hiding in the shade of the trees, of course. Goths simmer in the shade.

When she’d off-handedly questioned his upgraded wardrobe one afternoon, Danny looking positively edible in the shades, tight black jeans, crisp new shoes and a tailored fit button down, the top two buttons undone, a pleased smile shining in the afternoon sun, he’d merely lifted his shades onto his forehead into his fringe of ruffled black hair and said, “We’re Juniors now Sam, I figured it was about time I stopped dressing like I was in middle school and look a bit more presentable. We’re going to be in college soon.” When she’d then asked where he’d even gotten the money for any of this, he’d shrugged and mentioned a rich grandfather or something before Tucker butted in and demanded the two of them walk over to the cheerleaders that were currently gawking at them. Sam had groaned and silently wished looks could actually kill as she glared at Danny and Tucker entertaining the fawning and squeaking girls. What an opportune time it would have been for Desiree to appear to grant that wish.

The thing with the cheerleaders had erased Sam’s suspicions at the time, replacing it was annoyance and jealousy. Things seemed okay for a while after that until something too big happened for Sam to overlook.

She had just waved goodbye to her parents and grandmother in the kitchen, backpack slung over her shoulder as she opened the front door for her morning walk to school when a loud thundering roar was heard in the streets. Sam stood, her purple eyes wide as Danny rumbled over in a shining black, white and neon green motorcycle. He stopped on the curb outside her house, pulling off his helmet and smiling widely. With his ruffled black hair, blue eyes shining, boyish grin, and thick black leather jacket, he was any girls dream and Sam felt the baser part of her female brain demanding she not question this and merely jump into his arms to ride off into the sunset.

When she felt her parents behind her in the doorway, their disapproval thick enough for her to feel on the back of her neck, she said a quick goodbye and hurried down towards Danny.

“Danny, what in the world is this!” she hissed, taking the offered extra helmet, her shock too much in the forefront of her mind to act rationally.

“A Ducati. Pretty sick, right?” Danny grinned, pulling his helmet back on, flipping up the face mask. “You might want to put that on. Your parents are still watching and I don’t think they’ll let you near me again if they don’t see me make you at least obey basic safety regulations.”

“Again? Ducati? Wait Danny, how did you even—”

“Again, your parents are watching! We’ve got only 15 minutes to get to school and I wanted to go the long way!” Danny’s grin was almost contagious. Sam looked from him to the roaring bike underneath him and nearly felt her knees grow weak. He reeved the engine and Sam’s resolve crumbled like a dry brown leaf.

She grinned widely. “Ok okay, just this once!” She pulled on the helmet, her heart beating excitedly as she swung her leg over behind Danny, hugging him around the chest as she got comfortable. The bike’s roar as they took off drowned out not only the Manson’s panic protests as their daughter was whisked away by “that no-good Fenton boy!”, but the doubts in Sam’s mind were blissfully silenced as well as they took off down the street.

Once the ride was over, the bike turned off, Sam reluctantly releasing Danny and finally having two boot-clad feet on solid ground, the rational part of her mind reprimanded her and demanded answers for the sexy monster that stood before her.

But just as she had opened her mouth to question where in the world this sex on wheels machine had come from, the magnet had done its job. Every girl that had been outside the school before the bell was now around them. Well, around Danny obviously, pawing at him and the bike, demanding rides, offering their numbers, wondering dreamily when Danny had suddenly become Mr. Sexy.

Sam stumbled away from the smothering crowd, glaring along with all the boys at Danny. As the bell rang and the crowd didn’t disperse, Mr. Lancer eventually showed up, demanding all the girls and Danny get to class. “I don’t care how popular you get with your new toys, Fenton, you are to be in class on time like everyone else.”

Tucker was obviously no kind of help when it came to figuring out this problem. That was because Tucker clearly didn’t see it as a problem at all. On the contrary, he was delighted with Danny’s glamorous new transformation, demanding to take the bike on rides, talking engines and motors with Danny until Sam nearly wanted to gag in her salad.

Even when Sam pulled Tucker to the side after their shared Calc class, Tucker shrugged off her questions and concerns. “Who cares how he got it? Maybe it’s an early birthday present or something. It’s totally sweet!”

Sam shook her head in irritation. It wasn’t the stuff that bothered Sam. She had stuff herself—being related to the ultra-rich creator of the machine that spins cellophane on deli toothpicks had its perks, like an indoor theater and bowling rink, and all the latest gadgets. And it wasn’t like Danny had changed personality-wise, other than perhaps looking a bit too pleased with himself in his new attire and with all the added female attention. But honestly, he still hung out with Sam and Tucker regularly and strangely enough, Danny only seemed to _like_ the attention; Sam had yet to really see Danny take up any offers of dates with any of the girls. So it wasn’t any kind of _real_ jealousy that bothered her either.

What bothered her was that she didn’t know where it was all coming from. But even that wasn’t exactly the problem because, similar to that situation with Tucker and the Ember photo, Sam didn’t need or even _want_ to know every detail about Danny’s life.

No, the real problem was that when she actually asked, Danny didn’t give a real answer. Which meant only one thing; he was keeping a secret.

Danny had many secrets. His ghost powers were a secret. The fact that he regularly snooped in Jaz’s room was a secret. His love for the pop band The Other Direction was a secret. But none of that was a secret to _Sam._ The three friends told each other _everything,_ especially the exciting or big secrets. If Sam knew about his ghost powers and everything it came with, why would Danny ever feel he had to keep anything from her?

Did he have a secret job? Maybe it was embarrassing, like being the sign mascot for the Nasty Burger. But he’d done that before, and hadn’t lied about it.

Maybe Danny was stealing. With powers that allowed you to faze through walls and turn invisible, stealing money from cash registers or even banks couldn’t be too hard. But no, Danny wasn’t like that. Despite the many temptations, Danny was a good kid at heart. She would have been able to tell if his morals had really fallen _that_ low.

So then maybe it _was_ all gifts from his parents or a rich relative. But that just didn’t seem right; Jack and Maddie weren’t poor but they certainly didn’t make enough off of their inventions and research on Ghost Hunting to be able to afford _these_ kinds of luxuries. And the only relative Sam had ever heard of was Maddie’s sister who lived in a small hut in Tennessee. She didn’t seem to exactly be rolling in dough. But the main problem was that if it was merely gifts from family, why didn’t Danny talk about it more? Why did he always answer so dismissively? Or not at all?

No, Danny was definitely hiding something, and Sam was going to find out what it was.

 ...

Sam knocked on the door to Fenton Works, her heart beating nervously, not so much from the trouble she’d be in if she were to be caught skipping class, but more so from the information she might soon discover.

She heard a loud crash and _boom,_ and then suddenly the door was ripped open and a gust of black smoke escaped the house. Sam coughed and waving the cloud away, seeing Maddie standing in the doorway, orange goggles pulled down over her eyes.

“Sam? Shouldn’t you be in school?” Maddie questioned as Sam heard grunting and metal-on-metal sounds from inside the house. Maddie turned and called, “Jack! Be careful with that machine, its acting finicky, releasing all that ecto-exhaust!”

“I’ve got a study hall right now Mrs. Fenton, I came by to pick up something for Danny. We’ve got Bio later today and he asked me to come get his textbook,” Sam lied smoothly, a smile on her face.

“Oh that boy, he needs to focus more on studies. He shouldn’t be forgetting his textbooks!” Maddie grumbled, pulling the door open a bit wider to let Sam through. “We’ve got an unprotected visitor Jack, don’t start any tests!”

Sam looked towards the living room to see the couch and coffee table pushed against the wall, a huge contraption in the middle of the room surrounded by odds and ends of metal, wiring, and bolts as well as tools of all shapes and sizes. Jack was covered in soot and some sort of green glowing goo. He looked up from whatever it was he had been trying to stick into the machine.

“Sam? Shouldn’t you be in school?”

“Study hall, Mr. Fenton. Just picking up something for Danny.”

“Danny forgot his Biology textbook. Again,” Maddie grumbled, walking over to the machine and taking the object from Jack, sliding it easily into a slot on the other side.

“Ah Biology, my favorite subject in high school,” Jack mused fondly, removing his goggles, revealing large circles around his eyes where the soot hadn’t covered his face. “Dissecting frogs and pig hearts, pulling things apart and figuring out how they tick. Real science right there!”

Sam groaned internally before pulling her parent-smile back onto her purple lips. “Speaking of real science, what’s this new thing you guys are working on?”

“It’s called—” Jack had enthusiastically began before Maddie quickly cut in before Jack could officially dub the creation some odd name.

“It doesn’t _officially_ have a name yet, but it’s a device that, once complete, should allow us to create smaller, synthetic portals into the ghost zone. It’ll be portable, so instead of sucking the ghost into a thermos or vacuum and having to safely transport the spirit back into the house, this will allow us to dispel the ghosts back into the ghost zones on the spot, leaving clean up much more effective and safe.”

“Oh, that sounds great!” Sam exclaimed, actually impressed and pleased with the prospect of the device. Over the years, Danny, Sam and Tucker had been, subtly, trying to convey to Maddie and Jack that spirits did in fact have feelings and emotions and that ripping them apart may not be the best way to study them. Slowly, the duo gave up their ectoplasm-lust crazed ways in favor of ghost-friendlier ways of hunting and exorcising. It was definitely a relief for Danny, who was currently planning on revealing his big secret to his parents on his 18th birthday, after graduation. At least now he knew they wouldn’t try to tear his limbs off.

“Well I’m just going to go grab his book, be back in a flash!” Sam said before couple could begin explaining the finer points of the inventions construction, hurrying up the stairs towards Danny’s room. She went down the hall, the last room on the right, and hesitated for only a moment before opening the door. She felt a bit guilty and more than a bit intrusive to be going into Danny’s room without him here, but as a best friend, she felt it was within her rights to snoop so long as there was probable cause.

Upon entering, everything seemed pretty normal. Clothes on the floor, posters on the walls, bed half-heartedly made. It wasn’t a pigsty like most boys Danny’s age, just a healthy amount of clutter. Any stranger would see nothing wrong with this room. But as Sam looked around, she saw more hints of the problem; new more elaboration space models, a _much_ larger collection of CDs than normal, a brand new MAC desktop on the desk in the corner…no way Danny’s “secret rich relative” was just giving all this to Danny.

Sam wasn’t exactly sure what she was looking for. She searched under the bed, finding nothing but socks, tissues, dust and an empty pizza box. She looked through his closet, grimacing at the wide variety of trendy new clothes Danny would never have been caught dead in only a few months ago. She searched through his desk drawers, silently hoping to maybe find a fat wad of cash tucked away somewhere with a helpful little note that said MY SECRET WAD OF CASH THAT I USE TO BUY CRAZY EXPENSIVE STUFF THAT I RECEIVED FROM SECRETLY SELLING MY KIDNEY. _Something_ that would give Sam a clue!

She scratched at her head, frustrated with the lack of any substantial evidence. _Come on Danny! I know something is up. I just want to help, I don’t want to be kept in the dark…_

She looked around, moving towards his bedside dresser, reluctant to open the drawer. Again, her best friends were two teenage _boys,_ there were some places she just knew not to check, but she sighed, bracing herself for any Playboy magazines or half empty lotion bottles she might find in her search for the truth.

She opened the drawer, peered in and immediately pulled out a small slip of paper. She turned it over. It seemed to have come from a small writing pad, the company name AXION Labs printed at the top. In big letters, written in pen, in a handwriting that wasn’t Danny’s, it said:

_Call anytime. 608-555-XXXX_

Sam stared at the note for a few moments. This most likely had nothing to do with Danny’s money problems (or lack thereof), but this note rubbed Sam the wrong way. She wanted to rip up the number in a petty urge to never have Danny call this number again. He probably already had the number memorized, or at least in his contacts. Or maybe he didn’t, only keeping this note so no one would accidentally find this number in his phone. A secret girlfriend maybe?

No way, Danny wouldn’t lie about this. He wasn’t secretive about his crush on Paulina, or when he liked and then dated Valerie, so why would he suddenly start keeping his love life a secret? _Maybe because you get so jealous and bitchy._ Sam groaned, blushing at her own thoughts and hating them. Would Danny really keep secrets because of how she reacted?

This might not even have anything to do with a girl! It could be a doctor! _Call anytime. Does that really sound like something a medical professional would write?_

Sam took out her phone angrily, snapping a quick picture of the note before slamming it back into the drawer. She exited the room exactly as she had left it, but with more questions than answers running through her head.

“Did you find the textbook, Sam?” Maddie asked. Jack was currently lying prone on the ground underneath the machine, tinkering with some wires.

“Yup,” Sam said, patting her backpack. “Thanks.”

“Make sure to tell Danny that if he forgets his book one more time, he’ll be in trouble. I don’t care how busy he gets with work, school comes first. He can’t be slacking,” Maddie said sternly.

Sam paused with her hand on the front door’s knob. “Work?”

“Yeah, he didn’t tell you? Danny started working part-time on weekends, keeps him busy. Sometimes they call him in at the oddest hours, even during weekdays. I don’t like it much, but Jack and I believe having a job builds character and I told him that so long as he keeps up with his studies, it was fine to work a little overtime.”

“And he’s definitely been enjoying it! See all his crazy new toys?” Jack said excitedly from the floor.

Maddie scowled. “You mean that _motorcycle._ I didn’t think working minimum wage would allow him to afford _that,_ but…” Maddie shrugged in defeat. “Well Sam, thanks for helping Danny out anyway.”

“Yeah. No problem, Mrs. Fenton,” Sam said carefully. She paused before asking, “Um, did Danny happen to mention what this part-time job was?”

Maddie tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Hm, I can’t remember. Jack, do you know?”

Jack peaked out from the machine, a scrunched up look on his face. “I can’t remember him mentioning it, to be honest.”

“Odd.”

Sam sighed. “It’s no problem, I’ll just ask him later today. See ya around!” She turned and quickly left, her brain working in overdrive.

 _A job? Could it really be that simple? But why wouldn’t Danny just say something?_ Sam shook her head as she hurried off down the street towards Casper High. _No way. If there’s anyone Danny lies to, it’s his parents. They barely pay attention to him so I’m not surprised they don’t know where he works, but I’m sure he never even mentioned a name to them. He lied to them, and now he’s lying to Tucker and me. There’s no rich relative and these weren’t expensive gifts from his parents._

Once on back school grounds, Sam hide behind a cluster of trees, away from the windows of the school. She sat, waiting for the bell to ring. She pulled out her phone, deciding there was one more resource she could potentially use before confronting Danny. She dialed and waited.

Her phone rang once, twice and then a tired, “Hello?”

“Hey Jaz, it’s me Sam.”

“Sam? What’s going on? Shouldn’t you be in class? Is everything all right?” Sam groaned as Jaz’s voice became more alert and worried with every question.

“I had study hall and everything’s fine. Well, seemingly, but I’m not too sure,” Sam began. “Am I interrupting anything?”

“Nah, I was just napping before my evening classes start,” Jaz said wearily. Double majoring at one of the top schools in the country, plus summer classes…Sam was surprised Jaz had time to nap at all. “What’s up?”

“Have you talked to Danny recently?”

“I talked to him last week. He seemed fine, did something happen?”

“No, well not really. He’s acting normal but I’ve noticed he’s got a lot of new…stuff.”

“Stuff meaning…”

“Well like expensive stuff. He’s wearing new clothes, has a new computer, an Ipod, tickets to nearly _every_ concert, even a motorcycle! It’s not from your parents, and he doesn’t have a new job, at least not one he’s mentioned. Every time me or Tucker asks, he kind of just brushes us off.” Sam hadn’t realized she’d been talking so fast but finally letting out all her worries to someone who would actually care felt like a relief she needed to get out as quickly as possible. “So I mean, it’s not necessarily that there’s anything _wrong,_ just off I guess. He tells us everything and now suddenly I feel like he’s keeping something a secret. I was wondering if maybe you knew something.”

“As you told me once before, you and Tucker are his friends, you keep his secrets _from_ me. So if you guys don’t know where this money is coming from, why do you think _I_ would?” Jaz asked solemnly. Sam sighed, having already figured this outcome but had hoped anyway. She leaned against the tree trunk, looking off towards the street where cars began to park in front of the school, parents preparing to pick up their children. A shiny black Bentley sat in from of the entrance.

“I just thought…ever since you learned about his powers, you guys seemed closer. I thought maybe you’d know something,” Sam said in defeat. Another dead end. “If Danny’s not telling us, or your parents, or you…well where’s it coming from then? No offense to Danny but we’re the only ones he talks to and _trusts._ He’s getting this money from somewhere, or someone. He keeps claiming it’s a rich relative, but then you’re parents would know about it. I just talked with them, they think he’s got some kind of part-time job.”

Sam heard a shrill ringing coming from the school that signaled the end of the school day and the main doors burst open. “We definitely don’t have any of those, unless you want to count Plasmius as an actual uncle,” Jaz chuckled tiredly. “Not that he’d be willing to cough up money to Danny anytime soon.” Sam heard her sigh and she watched as jocks and cheerleaders and goths and bandos and nerds all streamed from the school. She waited for her two nerds. Well, her nerd and her newly transformed fancy rich boy. “I don’t know Sam. I can ask subtly about it but I feel like the person he’d be the most honest with is you. You’re his friend and you know Danny is a good kid. If he’s keeping something a secret, he’s probably got a reason for it. I knew about Danny’s powers for a few months before he found out that I knew, because I trusted him, and wanted him to tell me on his own. I was just there for him on the sidelines until he was ready. Maybe you just need to do the same.”

Sam sighed, finally spotting Danny coming out of the school. Tucker wasn’t with him yet, maybe running late trying to chat it up with the less popular cheerleaders. As though he really has a chance either way.

“Maybe. Alright thanks, Jaz,” Sam said, hanging up the phone so he could go out to meet Danny. She stepped out from behind the trees and lifted her hand to get his attention, but Danny was distracted. Sam saw him staring forward towards the street with an odd expression on his face. He kept going, not noticing her. She watched as he approached the shiny black car parked by the curb, watched as he tapped on the window with the knuckles of his fingers. The tinted window rolled down a little bit, and Danny seemed to say a few words to whoever was in the car before he quickly opened the door and got in. Sam watched with wide eyes as the Bentley took off down the road.

_Who in the…_

“Hey Sam!” Sam turned as Tucker ran over, panting slightly and adjusting his backpack. “Where were you during Bio? Some kind of animal protest again?”

“Who did Danny just leave with?” Sam asked, pointing her thumb towards the road where no black car now sat.

Tucker looked towards the street, eyes blankly turning left and then right, and then his head swiveling back towards the school. “Danny left?”

“Yeah he came out the school, got into some black car, and took off?”

“With who?”

“I don’t know!” Sam exclaimed, throwing up her arms. This was driving her crazy. She grabbed Tucker’s arm, dragging him towards the cluster of trees for some semblance of privacy from the crowds of post-class teens. “Look, I know you want to ignore all this and ride the coattails of Danny’s mystery wealth but something really weird is going on Tucker! We’re Danny’s friends and he’s not telling us the truth! Doesn’t that bother you?”

Tucker bunched his shoulder, thinking about it for a moment when suddenly both their phones went off.

Text message: Danny

_Sorry, I wasn’t feeling well, I went home by myself. I’ll c u tomorrow!_

“See!? He was fine this morning and he didn’t say a word about that car or who was in it! He’s not telling us the truth about things Tucker, and something really fishy is going on with this sudden splurge of money he’s got.”

“I guess you’re right, Sam.”

“Damn right I am.”

“But what do we do? Talk to his parents? I don’t want to be that friend.”

“Well you don’t have to be, I already talked to them. They think he’s getting everything from some part-time job.”

“Well maybe he is. Maybe that was a coworker or something who picked up him. He’s always saying he’s busy from time to time.”

“But why would he lie about it?”

“Could be embarrassed about it. Maybe he’s mopping floors at a nursey home. Or entertaining at kids’ parties.”

Sam rubbed her chin, thinking about the note she’d found. It had been from an AXION Labs notepad. Sam hadn’t thought much of it, having focused her jealous rage on the phone number, but maybe it had been a clue. Could Danny be working for them?

A thought popped into Sam’s head, a sudden idea and she didn’t like it at all. But it would explain a few things…

“Alright Tucker, I may have a theory. Don’t freak out, I don’t really have proof but…what if Danny’s “part-time” job was helping Axion Labs become more ghost proof?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well ever since the incident with Cujo, we know AXION Labs has been trying to prevent any ghost from entering and getting its technology. Maybe…maybe Danny made some kind of deal with them and is letting them try out their defenses on him.”

“You really think he’d reveal his secret to them, just for some money? I don’t know Sam. Where’d you’d get an idea like that anyway? Its way more out there than him simply flipping burgers or doing magic acts.”

Sam scratched the back of her neck, glancing away. “Well…I may have skipped bio to go to Danny’s house and snoop through his room…”

“Sam!”

“I know, but I was worried about him Tuck!”

“That’s honestly a new level of creepy and intrusive!”

“I know I know, but what was I supposed to do! He keeps avoiding my questions, and I just wanted to see if I could find something!”

Tucker shook his head and sighed. “Well. Did you find anything?”

“Not much. More expensive stuff. Only real clue was a note I found. The paper was from an AXION Labs writing pad, that’s where I got the idea.”

Tucker nodded. “Did the paper say anything?”

Sam pulled out her phone, showing the photo she’d taken. “Just that and the phone number. It wasn’t much but seemed suspicious enough to be a clue.”

Tucker took out his phone, typing something in. “608…that’s the Wisconsin area code.” Tucker paused, a grave look on his face. “ _Madison_ , Wisconsin.”

Sam suddenly remembered what Jaz had said… ‘ _Unless you want to count Plasmius as an actual uncle’…_ Sam’s insides ran cold.

Rich relative. Part-time job. AXION Labs. Wisconsin.

“Maybe Danny didn’t have to reveal his secret, because the owner of AXION Labs already knew about it…” Sam said, her voice low. She shook her head. “No! But that doesn’t make sense! Why would Danny suddenly do this, why would he work for Vlad like this, as a test guinea pig!? Just for a couple bucks? He wouldn’t do that!”

“You’re damn right he wouldn’t,” Tucker agreed with a firm nod. “It’s got to be something else. Maybe it’s a coincidence. Or maybe the note has absolutely nothing to do with the money thing.”

“Maybe,” Sam relented uneasily. But if there was anything Sam didn’t believe in, it was coincidences. Wisconsin and money both equaled Vlad. He most likely had something to do with this, and whenever that was the cause, nothing good came out of it.

“We’ll talk to Danny then. Tomorrow. We can’t keep waiting around, especially if Vlad’s involved. Danny could be in trouble.”

“Right,” Tucker agreed.

Sam was determined to get answers this time around. She wouldn’t take anymore of Danny’s excuses or diversions. She just hoped nothing happened to him today so that she’d see him tomorrow.

…

Turns out, they didn’t get that chance. Not that something bad happened to Danny. Well, technically nothing _fatally_ bad happened to Danny. During lunch, when Sam and Tucker were near frantic with worry about where Danny was, they both got a text.

Text message: Danny

_Guys I crashed my motorcycle this morning. I’m fine but I’m not coming into school today._

Sam and Tucker quickly shared a worried look before Sam sent off a text:

Sam: _U sure you’re OK? What happened?_

Danny: _Turned 2 fast or something. I’m good, honestly. C U guys tomorrow._

Sam: _Can we come C U after school?_

Danny: _Nah, Mom’s kind of pissed about this whole thing._

Sam sighed, shaking her head as dread slowly seeped into her stomach and throughout her thoughts. “Guess we’ll talk just to him tomorrow.”

…

“Guys, aren’t you being a little over dramatic?” Danny said calmly, putting his books back into his locker after his Health class. They all shared gym next, and Sam wasn’t going to let him off easily.

“No Danny, I don’t think we are. We’re worried about you,” Sam insisted.

“Why?” Danny exclaimed, suddenly turning towards Sam and Tucker, looking them in the eye for the first time all day. “What are you guys worried about? That I’ve got some extra money? That I’ve been buying some new stuff for myself? I’ve offered to get you guys things, and it’s not like I’ve been ditching you or anything. So what’s the big deal?”

“You’re lying to us about how you’re getting it, that’s the big deal!” Sam snapped. “Since when do you lie to us about anything!”

“Since when did I suddenly have to tell you every little detail of my life?” Danny demanded.

“Oh, I don’t know Danny. When we became best friends, I assumed you’d at least tell us the _important_ stuff, or at least have the decency to say to our faces that you don’t want to talk about it instead of lying and sneaking around!”

Danny huffed in annoyance, pulling out his backpack. Sam slammed his locker shut. “Look Danny, keep your secrets, I really don’t care! You can be the most infuriating person I know sometimes! If you want to play into Vlad’s hands, I don’t give a damn!”

She turned on her heel and marched off, immediately regretting her words but knowing she wouldn’t take them back just yet. She threw open the door to the girl’s locker room, ignoring all the gossiping girls as she went to her corner locker, fishing out her gym wear.

Sam had a feeling things would go this way. She had hoped he’d come clean when he realized how worried they were, but apparently his little secret was more important. She could only hope Tucker could get some information from him in the boy’s locker room.

…

During gym, Sam didn’t talk to either Danny or Tucker, running her laps alone, lapping them at least three times. Danny had gotten better in gym, but didn’t seem too into it today. Tucker was just as out of breath as usual. The fresh air and exercise helped to clear Sam’s head though. She ran a mile and a half, finally leaning against the chain-link fence and downing the rest of her water before she felt her anger had been sweated out of her. Danny and Tucker ambled over, panting, and Danny at least looked halfway guilty.

“So…you know about Vlad then?” Danny started, his voice small as he looked at his shoes, scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably.

Sam’s heart dropped into her stomach at those words. So. It was true. She rounded on him. “Danny, are you insane! And then you get mad at _us_ for worrying about you!?”

Danny’s ears tinged red in embarrassment. “Well, I mean it’s not like I’m in trouble—”

“Everything about Vlad is trouble, I thought we all knew this!” Sam exclaimed, shaking her head. “Especially if he’s using you for experiments!”

“I knew—wait what?” Danny asked, embarrassment replaced with confusion. “Experiments? What are you talking about?”

Sam opened her mouth but paused. “I…aren’t you letting Vlad use you as a test dummy to improve AXION Labs security against ghosts?”

Danny blinked and then burst into laughter. “What! No, how the heck did you come up with a crazy idea like that?”

Sam and Tucker exchanged looks and Sam looked away guiltily. “It was just a wild theory…”

“So wait, then what does Vlad have to do with all the money?” Tucker asked.

Danny stopped laughing, suddenly looking uncomfortable again. He paused before saying, “It’s nothing really. He offered some money and I took it.” Sam and Tucker stared at Danny. “What?” They waited for him to continue. He shrugged. “That’s it.”

“He just gave you money,” Sam said, her expression blank.

“And you just took it,” Tucker added, his face also as blank. Danny shrugged and nodded. Sam and Tucker exchanged skeptical looks and looked back at Danny, clearly not buying it.

“First problem with that poor ass excuse is that Vlad wouldn’t do that without there being some kind of catch or strings attached,” Sam said.

“And secondly, even if that _was_ true,” Tucker said. “Why would you keep something that simple a secret?”

“Looks guys, I didn’t say anything to you guys because I knew you’d get like this!” Danny exclaimed. “The million and two questions, the skepticism—”

“Because that doesn’t make any sense!” Sam and Tucker exclaimed in unison.

A shrill whistle sounded and the gym teacher called for everyone to head back to the locker rooms.

“Whether it makes sense or not, that’s what happened,” Danny said firmly, turning and jogging ahead of them towards the school.

Sam felt her anger boiling back up as she jogging after him, knowing full well he was still lying through his teeth. But Sam was determined now more than ever to find out what was going on.

 ...

The next couple of days, Danny seemed more quiet than usual and of course Sam knew why. Lying, sneaking, deceptive jerk!

But Sam cared about Danny’s safety. She and Tucker talked more, and they figured it could be possible that Vlad was blackmailing or threatening Danny in some way. Bugs or cameras maybe that made it so Danny couldn’t tell anyone what was going on. So they decided to drop the issue of Vlad and money, at least around Danny, acting like they believed his explanation. Things appeared relatively normal for a while.

Until finally, the perfect opportunity arose for Sam to finally find out the truth.

After school, Sam, Tucker and Danny all were at the lockers, joking about the substitute they had just had for English who had seemed convinced that pigeons were going to be the next dominant species on Earth.

A ding sounded from Danny’s pants pocket. He took out his phone and when he read whatever text it was, his face changed slightly. Sam noticed, and tried to decipher the expression. He quickly put his phone away and Sam watched as Danny put a mask on, effectively hiding whatever emotion had just come across his features from that text.

“Uh, rain check on that movie guys,” he said as he pulled out his backpack. “I gotta go.”

“Aw man, but we preordered the tickets,” Tucker complained.

“I’ll pay you back,” Danny said quickly before turning and heading towards the front entrance.

“Oh yeah, with that ‘free money’,” Sam muttered before running off after Danny, hiding behind other students and corners so he wouldn’t notice her following. He headed out the door, down the stairs and towards the street, where a shiny black Bentley sat.

 _The black car from last time!_ Sam thought, feeling the pieces finally falling together. She hid behind a thick tree, peaking around as Danny pulled open the door. She gasped as she saw Vlad Masters in the driver’s seat, smiling his usual smug grin as Danny got in the car, slamming the door closed. The car took off.

“Oh that’s it,” Sam fumed and took off after the car.

 _So Danny was at least telling the truth that Vlad was involved. But if Vlad had just “given” Danny free money, they wouldn’t need to be hanging out. So something else is going on,_ Sam thought, her brain working in overdrive as she struggled to follow the car which was quickly disappearing.

_That note was Vlad’s…Call anytime. What’s going on??_

Thankfully the drive wasn’t far but even though the car had quickly and almost nearly gone beyond Sam’s sight, she saw it down the street turn into a familiar parking lot.

City Hall.

_Mr. Mayors got some dirty secrets._

Sam caught her breath and walked more calmly to City Hall, figuring if Vlad was bringing Danny to a public building, he wasn’t in immediate danger.

Sam went up the front steps, noticing a familiar black car parked in the MAYOR parking spot. She entered through the front doors, immediately spotted by a secretary. “Hello young lady, can I help you?”

Sam paused, not wanting the secretary to alert Vlad that anyone was here to see him. He’d cover his tracks, and then Sam would never know what was going on.

“Oh, I’m here on a school project. I was wondering if I could look through some of the old records for information about the old railways of the city,” Sam asked, smiling her polite grin, hoping to not look like too much a delinquent despite her all black attire.

The secretary seemed friendly enough and escorted Sam to a large room with lots of books and filing cabinets. “These are the public records, so you can look through any of these for your report,” she informed Sam, who nodded and thanked the woman. The secretary left and Sam immediately pulled out her phone, sending a quick text to Tucker to tell him where she was and what she was doing. It was always good to inform someone when you were going off to do something dangerous. In case you disappear.

Sam waited a few minutes before opening the door and peaking down both hallways. Empty. She grinned and started down the left, spotting an elevator and a directory beside it.

“Let’s see. Mayor’s office, second floor, room 126. Gotcha,” Sam whispered, eyes narrowed. She headed down the hall towards the stairwell. “Don’t worry Danny, I’m coming.”

Once on the second floor, Sam snuck down the hall, ducking under the windows on doors where she could see adults in suits chatting loudly or talking on phones or filling out paperwork. What a dull life to live. Unless of course you’re the half-ghost evil overlord mayor. Then life must be grand.

At the end of the hall, Sam saw another secretary desk on the side of the mayor’s office door. This secretary was young and gorgeous, a sharp blond bob and bright red lips that didn’t look as friendly as the older woman downstairs. Sam took a deep breathe, not caring about consequences. Danny could be in trouble.

Sam shrugged off her backpack and ran pasted the secretary who jumped out of her seat in alarm. Sam threw open the mayor’s door despite the woman’s protests and stepped inside. “Danny, are you okay! You don’t need to lie anymore, you—”

Sam paused, looking around the room. It was empty, expect for Vlad who sat looking quite surprised at his desk.

“Miss. Manson?” Vlad inquired with a raised brow. His shock melted away as he chuckled and shifted his in seat, sitting forward, elbows on the desk. “Care to explain your suddenly explosive visit?”

“Where’s Danny?” Sam demanded just as the secretary entered behind her.

“I’m sorry sir, she just ran by and burst in. Do you want me to call security?”

Sam glared at the woman.

Vlad raised a calming hand. “Now now, let the girl speak. She burst in with such passion, clearly there’s something wrong. She may be just a child but she’s a citizen of this town and so as mayor, I’m welcoming to all concerns.” Vlad gave Sam a patronizing smirk, like he was some benevolent patient father-figure doing a big favor for a dramatic kid. Sam balled her hands into fists.

“You heard me. Where’s Danny? I saw him get in the car with you, I know he’s here.”

Vlad paused, a strange look on his face. He shifted again in his seat and then nodded to the secretary. “Go back to your desk, Caroline, in case more reckless teens try bursting in.” The woman nodded and left. The doors closed behind Sam.

Vlad sighed. “Danny always insisted on his little lies, either thinking he’s protecting people or he’s just too scared to tell the truth.”

“Well, why don’t _you_ tell me the truth then?” Sam said between clenched teeth. “I’m tired of all these excuses! He said you’ve been giving him money, is that true?”

Vlad’s face twisted slightly and then he nodded. “Yes.”

“Why?”

Vlad chuckled. “Simple. He’s working for me.”

“Liar!” Sam exclaimed.

“I’m not, actually,” Vlad said, leaning back in his chair. “He’s my assistant here at the office. Ask Caroline, she’s seen him around here often enough, filing papers, getting me coffee.”

Sam shook her head. “No. No, if that were true he would have told us! And why the hell would he ever work for _you?_ ”

“And that right there is why he didn’t tell anyone,” Vlad said with an annoyed roll of his eyes. “Embarrassed to be getting his arch-nemesis coffee. Look girl, I don’t expect you to understand me and Daniel’s relationship. Yes we fight, yes we’re rivals. But we are both cut from the same cloth. We understand things about each other that you will never understand.” Sam felt herself trembling with anger. “There are times when we get along. You don’t see it because he believes you’ll only believe I’m brainwashing him or some non-sense, or that simply sitting down and talking to me is dangerous. But that’s only because you children don’t understand him—don’t understand _us_. I’ve been busy in the office, I knew Danny needed some extra money and some relaxing time away from ghost fighting and school. So he comes here. Files a few forms, covers for Caroline if she takes a short break, some easy tasks. Some days, if he’s tired from school, he can just nap or work on homework. I pay him well above minimum wage, from my own pockets because I have the finances to do that. You may not believe me, I don’t really care either way…” Vlad gave Sam a hard stare, his dark blue eyes connecting to her violet ones. Sam had never really spoken with Vlad before, only seen him in fights with Danny or heard stories Danny told. She’d never had those sharp eyes on her so solidly, holding her. For some reason, Sam’s fist relaxed and she heard sincerity in his voice, and saw no malice in his eyes. For some reason, she found herself believing him. “I care about the boy, in my own way. Our relationship is unconventional, but it works for us.”

“Where is he now?” she asked quietly, the anger gone from her.

“I sent him to the third floor a few minutes ago to find me all the files on the school construction. I need to verify it for the construction workers,” Vlad said dismissively, looking through some files on his desk. “You can go find him, if you want to have a long conversation with him about honesty or whatever, but I am a little busy at the moment. I’ve given you you’re explanation and I’m not causing any trouble for you to be meddling in, so you if you don’t mind…”

Sam nodded absent-mindedly and hurried from the room, intent on finding Danny. If all that was true, he should have said something. Danny should never be afraid to tell his best friends the truth, no matter how much they might over react. It just means they care.

Sam figured the best thing to do would be to apologize.

…

Vlad watched as the goth ran from the room, the large wooden doors closing behind her with a solid click. Vlad sat back in his chair with a sigh. “She’s gone.”

“That was honestly some very impressive and sentimental lying,” Danny said with a laugh in his voice. Vlad spread his legs and peered down to see Danny shaking his head under the desk.

“It’s not necessarily all lies. A sprinkle of truth; our relationship is rather strange,” Vlad said with amusement, his fingers lightly tracing Danny’s cheek. “You should take lessons, learn to lie better. It’ll stop problems like _that_ from happening.”

“Hey! I don’t particularly _like_ lying like you do,” Danny pouted, resting his forehead against Vlad’s knee. “They’re my friends…”

“Yes well your friend is on her way up to find you, so if you don’t want her furious and barging in _again_ , I suggest you finish what you were about to start,” Vlad purred with a smirk, pulling down the small zipper of his trousers. “That is, only if you want that new game you’ve been mentioning for the past week…”

“Alright alright,” Danny muttered but Vlad heard the amusement in his tone. “A quick one.”

“Better be a damned _good_ quick one; you said that game costs 80 dollars.”

“Oh come on, that’s nothing compared to the other things you’ve bought for me.”

“Oh, you mean like the 10,000 dollar motorcycle you crashed?”

“Hey, I’m pissed about it too! I lost my virginity for that beauty and now it’s sitting in some shop cause that asshole on the freeway doesn’t know how to use a turn signal!”

Vlad hummed with a smile. “Definitely worth those 10,000 dollars, though,” he mused in a thick, hushed voice, bringing a bright blush to Danny’s cheeks. “I wasn’t lying to the girl; you work for me for money, so get to work.”

Danny did indeed get to work, more than earning that 80 dollar game—and in record time too— before hurrying off to find Sam, who was still looking for him upstairs. She didn’t notice the slight flush in his cheeks or his hair rumpled in the back where a large hand had gripped tightly. She didn’t notice the subtle motion of rubbing the back of his hand over his lips when he’d finally found her. She just apologized, asked if what Vlad had told her was true. Danny pretended to look surprised that she knew, as though he hadn’t been crouched under the desk the whole time, between the man’s legs, gripping strong thighs and rubbing the rich prick through his trousers.

He felt slightly guilty for lying to everyone. He wasn’t a bad kid, and he cared about Sam and Tucker, especially since they had been so worried about him. But he was relieved that Vlad had convinced her with his lie and that all the worrying would be over. Danny didn’t need rescuing from his little “relationship”. Vlad was right; they understood each other in ways no one else did. But at the core of it all, they _were_ enemies. They were merely using each other; Danny for money and gifts, Vlad for pleasure and brief moments of pretending he was loved and no longer alone. It was twisted, and wrong but it worked for them. They understood each other, and that was it.

Danny told his friends everything else; this was one secret they didn’t need to know, just between him and Vlad.

(PRDXO AXAAV)

**Author's Note:**

> Despite the fact that most of you maybe already had an idea of what was going on, I hope you had as much fun as I did with Sam's little mystery sleuthing! xD This might be an unpopular opinion in the pompous pep fandom, but I really like Sam as a character and it was a lot of fun to write this story in her perceptive rather than Danny or Vlad's again. A fun little change.
> 
> I'm not a rich person like Mr. Masters, so any price discrepancies or my poor excuse for knowing "cool" brand names and male fashion is very poor. I did some research but its mostly me just pulling familiar names out my ass and throwing them around xD
> 
> I struggled for a while with the title, going back and forth with a lot but I liked this one. The little extra goes hand in hand with the mystery theme of the fic, so I'm sure many of you Gravity Fall fans out there might appreciate it ;) I couldn't resist
> 
> Alright, I really hope you all enjoyed, i definitely did! I revised this myself a few times but there may be a few mistakes I missed. Plz leave a comment or kudos if you can. I'm honestly in love with this ship so I have all kinds of stories on the way for them, be on the look out! :) Till next time!


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